About us

We are an all-ability, 11-18 school with 833 students on roll and we were granted Academy status with effect from 1 June 2011. We take children from Ledbury Primary School and over twenty other local primary schools in Herefordshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire.

Headteacher’s Introduction

Please click on the link for an introduction from the Headteacher Mr Andrew Evans.

Site and Facilities

The school is situated close to the edge of the town with views over the surrounding countryside. Subject departments have well-equipped suites of teaching rooms, all with interactive whiteboards or projectors, and our seven ICT suites, with over three hundred computers, ensure that computer-based facilities are always available. Our sport and leisure complex provides excellent indoor facilities together with a large, floodlit Astroturf pitch.
In 2009 we opened our Student Services Centre, the first of its kind to be established in Herefordshire. The Centre sets a new standard for inclusive and supportive secondary education, bringing together all essential pastoral and academic support services under one roof.

Sixth Form

Our Sixth Form Centre is housed in a purpose-built, separate suite of teaching rooms, an ICT network, study room, common room and offices. We have an open entry policy with courses to suit students of all abilities and aptitudes. Numbers each year average around one hundred and twenty students and this means that class sizes can be kept relatively small.

Senior Leadership Team

Our Extended Senior Leadership Team includes the Head, the Deputy, three Assistant Heads and the School Business Manager. Successive OFSTED reports have praised the quality of leadership and management at JMHS.

The Staff

Staff work well as a team and are very supportive of each other. New staff have an induction programme which is individual and matched to previous experience, skills and prior knowledge. Faculty leaders see their most important role as the support of colleagues and they are committed to helping members of their team to work as effectively as possible.

Pastoral Care

Our pastoral care is administered through a House system. We have an excellent pastoral care and House system, ensuring that students are helped to settle in as smoothly as possible.There are four Houses each with a team of personnel that includes a House Leader, a Support Assistant and House Tutors. The House system is also the focus of a range of challenging competitions that involves all curriculum areas. We find this gives students a strong sense of identity within our school community.

House Tutor Groups Students receive a high level of care from their House Tutor who has the chance to really get to know their tutees. We firmly believe that each student should have a key adult whose support is continuous throughout their school careers.

Special Needs Provision

We are a fully inclusive comprehensive school who ensures that all students can achieve their potential academically, personally, socially and emotionally regardless of their gender, ethnicity, social background, religion, sexual identity, physical ability or educational needs. At JMHS we aim to provide a personalised approach to learning with the relevant support and adjustments made to learning that will maximise your child’s progress both within and outside of the classroom.

Our Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Co-ordinator, Mrs K Barker, has responsibility for SEND, and is always willing to meet with parents to discuss a students’ specific needs.

Enrichment

Alongside every student’s full academic programme of lessons the school is committed to providing an enticing, challenging and broad range of experiences which support their holistic development. The more involved students become in school life, the higher their achievement is overall. They need to become resilient, independent, well-rounded individuals and our programme of events is designed to support this core belief.

We offer a wide range of enrichment activities covering every subject, while the strength of both curricular and extra curricular Sport and Performing Arts has been recognised by the award of Sportsmark and Artsmark Gold.

Our termly Challenge Days, when the timetable is suspended, give further opportunity for a wide range of trips and workshops for all year groups. As such, we have created a programme for your child which ensures that their curriculum knowledge and practical application is enhanced. It is expected that all students in the year group will take a full part in all activities.

Alongside our programme of timetabled events, there will also be further opportunities for your child to opt into in subject specific areas. These include trips for France, Germany and Spain, cultural trips and field trips.

The wider community

Ledbury has a thriving reputation in the arts as the home of Ledbury Poetry Festival and The Big Chill festival, which takes place at Eastnor some two miles from the town, and our students have many opportunities to perform at both of these events.